Day 15 – June 27, 2015

Day 15 – June 27, 2015
Walla Walla to Dayton 31 miles

Bumble Bee – Audrey

Ok. Now this was a tough one. We got up at 3am and got out of the hotel by 4:40am. We had to do that. Even at this time in the morning the temperature was already about 75. We had a bit of issue leaving town but finally got on the Waitsburg road. It was just beautiful. We got on a long winding country road that took us through a surreal landscape of rolling golden wheat fields. It was all manageable even as we kept a steady climb. The total ascent for the day was around 1700 ft.

What I needed to contend with most is the panic that overtook me as I realized this was a race against the clock. All the weather forecasts predicted 110 degrees by the end of the day. I knew deep inside that 9am was the drop dead stop time. We were not going to be able to do more than that. Panic is not good because the adrenaline pumps too hard and exhausts you early. Gregg told me to relax, we would get there slowly but surely. That’s what I did.

Once we got to the beautiful historic town of Waitsburg it was only 9 miles to go. It was getting hot. I had already drank my 2 water bottles and my spare. Luckily Gregg strapped another Smart water liter to our front panniers. Opened that, and filled the water bottles again. Only
9 miles on flat HW 12, I can do that.

We finally got to Dayton, another cute historic town, at 8:53am, it was already 96! We quickly looked for the best place to cool off and have some breakfast, the Weinhard Cafe was the perfect spot. We were dizzy and tired.

We had booked the Blue Mountain Motel that we passed as we rode into town. It did not look too inviting and we questioned whether the air conditioners were all working properly. Thinking that this heat may have scared some people away, I decided to call the Best Western again. Sure enough, they had an opening. But since they were fully booked last night and again tonight we could not check in until 2-3pm. We had to find something to do to stay cool and wait. We ventured into the antique malls, the local drug store that even had a working soda fountain, and then once again to the Weinhard Cafe.

Coincidentally, my brother Daniel wrote his friends, Pat Mecheski, that we were doing at bike tour. Pat Mecheski checked out our blog and found out that we were actually on the same road – HW 12 – that they were taking for a drive to Wisconsin via Idaho and Montana. He left some comments on our blog and we connected. They called and said they were in Walla Walla and would be in Dayton in 30 mins. We had a nice visit with Pat and Hayley and the kids. It was nice catching up with them, especially as they are kindred travelers. The left us a nice wine bottle and well wishes.

We finally checked in and promptly took a long nap. Now for a quick dinner and early to bed because this is the only way can keep moving. Very very early in the morning.